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Everton are enjoying their best start to a season since 1978, with four wins and a draw seeing the Blues shoot to second in the early Premier League table.

Ronald Koeman’s new era has already got Evertonians dreaming as the scars of last season quickly begin to fade.

The Dutchman’s start to life at Goodison may come as a surprise to some but his arrival has brought a new outlook to how Everton operate on and off the field, as he seeks to ensure this talented squad finally unlocks its potential.

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“The players at Everton had a holiday of six or seven weeks,” said Koeman. “I changed it to start the season earlier.

“I had planned for Southampton to start the season one week or 10 days earlier because it’s not good that players get that length of holiday. That is one of the reasons they are not on the level they need to be.”

Koeman’s fears were confirmed when on the opening day Everton sparkled for 55 minutes, taking a 1-0 lead before fatiguing quickly in the sun. They allowed Spurs in to score a simple equaliser and conceded several chances in the final period.

Since then the 53-year-old has spoken of the high-intensity five-a-side drills they have been completing in training.

“The margins are small but our tempo is high,” he said. “We train for an hour-and-a-half and not two hours but we train in a really concentrated, intensive way and players find that difficult.”

Kevin Mirallas, a player who hardly looked like he was carrying surplus weight, added: “I have lost six kilos and you can say I am a new player. The manager wanted me to lose weight. At first, he wanted me to lose two kilos, then two more and finally two more. So that’s when I got those famous six kilos he told me that I was good.

“I did not realise it, but when I lost the weight, he put a six kilogram weight on my back in training and I felt the big difference — in play, over the first few metres, I am better."

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Move forward a month - Saturday’s 3-1 win over Middlesbrough - and his players kept up an impressive work-rate, pressing from the front for much of the 90 minutes.

They kept Boro at arm’s length as they coasted through a second half during which a previous Everton may have faltered and allowed opponents back into the game.

Building the house from the bottom

Before the unforeseen fitness issues, Koeman would have seen solving the Blues leaky defence as his first major task upon arriving.

When John Stones’ inevitable departure to Manchester City was confirmed in early August, he wasted no time in bringing 32-year-old Welsh skipper Ashley Williams in to boost his defensive ranks. Prying Williams away from Swansea for just £12 million was seen as shrewd business given his wealth of Premier League experience and performances at Euro 2016.

Alongside Phil Jagielka, Williams has become a key member of the new-look defence that has conceded just three times in five Premier League games so far.

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When questioned about Everton’s new-found sturdiness at the back, Koeman responded: “I believe that when you build a house, you start at the bottom, you don’t start at the top.”

This philosophy instilled by Koeman will have provided a dramatic shift in priorities to an Everton side that had been drilled to play open, attacking football under the previous regime - while often neglecting its defensive duty.

With Jagielka and Williams providing a settled pairing in front of the experienced Maarten Stekelenburg, Seamus Coleman and Leighton Baines have once again been give a license to get forward and influence Everton attacks. However, that license comes with the firm understanding that they must fulfil defensive obligations first and foremost.

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Tough love

Last week, Gareth Barry became another Everton player to speak out and admit that certain standards were not being met at the club towards the end of last season.

“The standards of the players were, for me, slightly slipping, on and off the pitch,” he said.

Koeman has worked to restore order both at Finch Farm and on matchdays. Strict rules are now in place regarding: mobile phone use, time-keeping, the wearing of caps and headphones - to name just a few. These rules designed to remind players they are in a place of work.

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The tough love shown does not stop there, with Koeman displaying a ruthless streak that could make Alan Sugar look cordial.

Trailing 1-0 at West Brom back in August, James McCarthy found himself unceremoniously hauled off after 38 minutes as a change of system was implemented. Everton went on to the win the game 2-1 and McCarthy’s replacement, the returning Romelu Lukaku, was one of the key factors in Everton’s change of fortunes.

Last week away at Sunderland, Koeman would execute his most ruthless decision to date.

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At 0-0, following a poor first half Ross Barkley would be removed for Gerard Deulofeu. Everton ran out 3-0 winners in a thrilling second period as the manager once again justified his big call, with Deulofeu himself holding the key as Everton hit Sunderland on the counter-attack several times.

Phil Jagielka spoke of the fear factor among the players, which is driving them to work harder to ensure they aren’t next to receive the hook.

“Yes there is a fear definitely,” he said. “He is not afraid of making the big decisions before and after the game, it is like being back at school with a new headteacher who is trying to be a bit stricter,” he said.

Ronald Koeman got 7 out of 8 in our quiz right - can you beat him?

Striking a balance

During an interview with a Dutch news channel Koeman inforced the importance of flexibility in his side’s methods.

“I am an advocate of retaining ball possession rather than chasing the ball and building from the back but in some cases if you are much more direct you can also be more dangerous,” he said.

“I believe that you always have to find a balance between both styles of play.”

This has been evident throughout his reign at Everton already, with the Blues interchanging between spells of sumptuous attacking play but also doing whatever is required to see out the game when necessary.

Take Saturday’s game as the example. After a spell of three goals in 20 minutes to blow Middlesbrough away, Everton slowed the tempo down in the second half to see the victory through, showing the game management which deserted them so often last term.

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“I also believe that it is very naive to only play football one way. However it is important to stay true to your football ideas.”

Koeman has shown a very needs-must approach so far and it’s clear he will do whatever it takes to win, he doesn’t find himself being influenced by outsiders perception of his ‘brand’ of football.

Everton now play their football with a more direct, steely nature and supporters have been delighted to once again watch their side roll up its sleeves and head into battle.

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The buzz around Goodison Park so far this season has been there for all to see - with fans out of their seats roaring the side on as Idrissa Gueye came out victorious in yet another crunching challenge.

Last campaign those same supporters would find themselves rooted to their seat as another series of endless passing would unfold in front of them.

Romelu Lukaku celebrates his first goal with manager Ronald Koeman.

A new-found hunger

Koeman’s concise methods alongside his clear belief that Everton should be challenging for Europe has become a policy that all his players can buy into.

Romelu Lukaku became disillusioned with the direction the club were heading in and began to seek a move to a Champions League club.

But, following the manager’s arrival and a flying start to the season, Lukaku appears keen to extend his Goodison stay and could even sign a new deal according to agent Mino Raiola.

The Belgian is at the centrepiece of Koeman’s Everton plans and a return of four goals from his last two games has shown he possesses the hunger and desire to fulfill the managers ambitions.

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35-year-old Gareth Barry has starred so far this season with two goals from midfield and appears to be enjoying a new lease of life as Koeman hailed the veteran as one of the best players he has ever managed.

The careers of Phil Jagielka, Seamus Coleman and Leighton Baines - who looked strangely out of sorts during the last two years - have been reignited as part of Everton’s highly experienced, effective defensive unit.

While people will talk about Everton’s failings towards the end of the transfer window, maybe Koeman’s best business will be the invigoration of the squad he had already inherited.